Valve



Aug. 21, 1928.

H. E. ATKINSON VALVE Filed Aug. 18, 1924 llmmemwz W 6. MW

Patented Au 21, 1928.

PATE NTjOFFlCE.

HERBERT E. ATKINSON, or nocrinsrnra, NE YORK.

VALVE;

I Application filed August 18, 1924. Serial No. 732,680.

This invention relates to valves for use 7 in connection with liquid orwith plastic or valves used to discharge the contents ofsemi-solidmaterial, and particularly to the tanks, mixers, and the like,in which milk or other food or perishable material is carried ortreated.

Ina valve for the purpose in question it is necessary to avoid deadspaces or pockets in which material can be trapped, and to provide readyaccess to all interior surfaces of the valve for the purpose ofsterilizing and cleaning it. Stufling-boxes' and non- .metallic parts ofall kinds are undesirable,

yetthe valve must be capable of holding tightlyagainst substantialpressure, and, in many applications, of handling materials containingsolid particles or grit without sufferinginjury from such materials.

The object of the present invention is to produce a sanitary valve whichshall fulfill the foregoing requirements, and which shall be, at thesame time, simple in construction and easy to operate and maintain. Tothis end'the invention consists in the valve hereinafter described, asit is defined in the annexed claim. V

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a sectionalside-elevation of avalve embodying the present invention, and Fig. Elis a bottom-view ofthe valve'.- 7

The invention is illustrated as embodied in a valve adapted for use indischarging the contents from the bottom of a tank, though the valve,either with or without obvious modifications, may be used in otherpositions. The body or casing 3 of the valve is cylindrical inform, andit is partially closed at the upper end to form a valve-seat 4. Thevalve-proper is a disc 5, provided with a soft-metal ring 6 seated in agroove in its uppersurfac'e. An upward projection 7 on the valve-discclosely fits the opening through the valve-seat, so that the uppersurfaces of the projection and thetop of the.

, valve-body form a single smooth surface when the valve is closed.

The valve-disc is fixed on the upper end of a long and relativelyslender stem 8, which is guided by a bearing-sleeve 9. The sleeve isintegralwith a lug 10, which 1 screws into the lowerend o the body 3. A

soft-metal ring, seated in a groove in the plug, makes a tight jointagainst a shoulder 11 on the body. V

The lower portion 12 of the bearing sleeve projects below the plug andis screws threaded to cooperate witha threaded cap 13. The cap isrigidly attached to the end of the valve-stem by'means of a pin 14, and

it is provided wi-th handles 15' bywhich it may be turned.

The inner end with a soft-metal insert 16, adapted to co operate with araised annulus 17 on theback of the valve-disc.

The body 3 has a lateral branch 18, and

of the sleeve 9 is provided the. outlet-opening through this branch isflush, at its lowermost point, with the upper. surface of the plug, sothat no pocket or dead space is formed above the plug. The valve isshown as attached to the bottom of a tank 19, with its uppermostsurfaces flush 'with'the inner surface of the tank. This arrangement,and the formation of the valve which permits it,avoids the oc' currenceof any inward projection which would interfere with the operation of' astirrer in the tank, while at the same-time no pocket or recess isformed to hold stagnant material o'rcollect dirt.

When the cap 13 is turned in the direction to close the valve, thevalve-disc is positively rotated while rnoving'into engagement with itsseat. It has been found that this combined movement has theefi'ec't ofcrash ing, and of displacing'from the raised rim of the valveseat, anysolid particles which might otherwise prevent tight seating of thevalve, and this makes the valve suitable for use with materialswhich-have been found to render the ordinary ground-plug valve uselessin a; short time, owing to scoring of the ground surfaces. The slenderstem 8, and the soft-metal insert 6, yield sufliciently to permit thevalve to seat closely, all,

around, without'the necessity of any grinding or of an expensive degreeof precision in the manufacture of the valve.

7 When the valve is opened to discharge the contents of the tank thelong bearing between the stem and its guide-sleeve'acts to prevent'theescape of liquid at this point without the assistance of packing of anykind, and this has been found true even with liquids under considerablepressure and.-

without great accuracy of fit between the, parts. As an extra precautionagainst leakage, however, the valve may be turned down until the discengages the upper end of the sleeve and thus forms a positive closure atthis point.

llhe n it: is necessary to clean the interior of the valve the plug 10and the parts carried thereby may he removed, without the use of anytool, by merely continuing the P0- tation of the cap after thevalve-disc has engaged the upper end of the guide-sleeve, whereby theplug is unscrewed from the body. The interior of the body may then becleaned easily, owing to its smooth cylindrieal form. The plug, may bereplaced in a similar manner. if a spacing" device he insorted betweenthe plug and the inner end of the cap to prevent seating of the valveuntil the plug has screwed home.

HERBERT E. ATKINSON.

